And Forever
by Liber-T.E.A
Summary: Music can unlock parts of you that you never knew existed.  RxD


I've wanted to do a RogerxDorothy story for a while now, and an idea for one just popped into my head. So, here you go.

I don't own The Big O or any of the music within.

* * *

It was a basic routine. Dorothy would get up, get dressed and prepared for the day, greet Norman and help him with setting up for breakfast, and then she would sit down at the piano and play a rousing tune to wake up her employer/landlord.

Today however, she didn't feel like playing the piano when she woke up. So, after getting ready, she headed downstairs to talk to Norman.

As she entered the kitchen, the elderly butler was already at work making eggs. He noticed her, and he smiled.

"Ah, Miss Dorothy. Good morning."

"Good morning, Norman. Do you need any help?"

"I think I have everything under control here, but I do need one thing."

"What would that be?"

"I need you to go pick up some orange juice from the market. We ran out yesterday, and I just found out this morning."

She nodded, and she turned to leave. Norman had one more thing to say, however.

"Uh, Miss Dorothy?"

She faced him again.

"Yes, Norman?"

"Since you won't be home to play the piano, Master Roger will probably sleep in. Feel free to take some time off to yourself today."

"Thank you, Norman."

"Just be home at a reasonable time, and don't forget the orange juice."

* * *

When she realized that she had no idea what she wanted to do, Dorothy decided to pick up the orange juice first.

It was a very nice day...by Paradigm City's standards anyway. The sun shined brighter than usual, and it seemed to have an effect on the population. Kids were playing in the street, adults were having happy conversations, and even the local birds were more cheerful.

Dorothy looked at all these things and felt sad, or rather, she figured that she would be sad if she were a human. She couldn't feel any of these things. Happiness, sadness, and even love and anger eluded her. It caused her no end of confusion.

She soon got to the market. It was a local market for houses outside the domes, and you could easily tell by the uplifting, personal atmosphere. Everybody was in a good mood, and everyone seemed to act like family.

The pale android located and purchased her orange juice quietly, instead focusing on the lively people around her. Here they were, poor and living in awful conditions outside the domes, and they were happier than most people inside the domes. If she could smile, she would have.

However, she soon realized that she now had nothing to do, so she looked around. Things would get really boring if she couldn't find something to do, and she didn't want to go home just yet. There had to be something...

She then realized something: she was very close to her "father's" old mansion. She could even see it from where she was standing.

She thought to herself for a second. Here was something to do. She hadn't been there for quite a while, and she missed the place. So Dorothy nodded to herself, and she peacefully walked to the mansion.

* * *

The mansion was old, dusty, and desperately in need of a good cleaning. Spiders, mice, and all manner of other vermin crawled around, apparently thriving in the lack of people living there. To top that off, the place was a pitch-black maze. Luckily for Dorothy, her light, memories of the building's layout, and her steeled nerves let her easily find her way through.

She looked through many rooms. Her old room, the lab, and even the old kitchens were explored by Dorothy. However, she soon remembered one room that she was never allowed in, a room that she had never seen and never explored: her father's library.

It was a private library, not unlike the public library that she was allowed into near the living room. This library, however, was much smaller, and it was only accessible by going through her father's bedroom.

When Dorothy got there, she grimaced. The room was even dustier than the rest of the house. Years of disuse had taken it's toll, and even opening the door created a cloud of dust, so much so that it blinded her optic sensors temporarily.

Looking around the room, she saw all kinds of books. There were manuals on various pieces of equipment, journals, novels, dictionaries, encyclopedias, and all manner of other literature. She even found a mysterious book called "Metropolis" on his desk.

However, when she tried to search one of his bookshelves, all the books accidentally fell off, creating an even bigger dust cloud. Dorothy was about to make a note to check and clean all of her vents when she got back to Roger's mansion when a large book suddenly hit her in the head.

She picked it up, and she found no title on the cover. Instead, a musical note adorned the front of the leather-bound book. Intrigued, she opened up the book. Inside, she found that it held not words, but notes. It was a book of sheet music, apparently mass-produced judging by the quality of the notes. Dorothy checked the book's inside cover, and she found her own name written there in her own handwriting.

She was interested even more now. She had no memories of this book, and here it was with her name written in her handwriting. However, about that time, a note fell out of the back cover. Dorothy picked it up, and she read it to herself:

_Dear Dorothy,_

_If you are reading this, then I must be gone. The book that you found this in belonged to the real you, Dorothy Wayneright. This was one of her prized possessions, and I stored it here in my library when she died. I had always meant to give this to you, but I guess it was not to be._

_This book, however old and unfamiliar it might be to you, might be a key to some of your memories. Old but cherished items do tend to do this to people. So, since you have my daughter's memories, there is a chance that it might help._

_I'm sorry I couldn't give this to you in person, and I hope you are safe._

_Love, Father_

Dorothy looked at the letter. If she could feel emotion, she would have lost control of them right then and there. Instead, she started reading through the book, memorizing every page.

Most of the sheet music were pieces that she knew and played everyday. Beethoven, Mozart, Bach, and many other composers were there. However, about midway through the book, she found something amazing.

The rest of the book was filled with blank staff paper, used for composing music. The first page, however, was the only one that had any writing on it at all, and it was obviously the original Dorothy that composed the work. Notes and lyrics were written down in good detail and quality. She memorized this more closely than the other works in the book.

However, she soon realized that she had been there for two hours. The orange juice had lost it's chill, and she had to get it home. So, she grabbed the book and the bottle of juice, and she quickly navigated her way out of the mansion.

* * *

Roger Smith loved to sleep in on the weekends. It was generally rare that he did so, since one particular android seemed to love to wake him up early with some song on that blasted piano.

Today, however, no piano was heard, so he woke up on his own around noon.

With a big yawn, he slowly got out of bed and grabbed his robe. His mind was too asleep to notice the lack of music or even the time.

As he walked into the dining room, he noticed Norman sitting alone with a plate of breakfast just for him. Roger smiled, and he sat down.

"Good morning, Norman."

"Good morning, Master Roger. What would you care to drink on this fine day?"

"Orange juice, please."

"I'm terribly sorry sir, but we are unfortunately out of that at the moment. I sent Miss Dorothy out this morning to fetch some more, but she hasn't returned yet."

Roger was worried. Then again, he was always worried when it came to Dorothy. He didn't know why, but he was.

Fortunately, Dorothy walked in at that very moment. Roger spied the book, but he decided to keep his mouth shut. So, he focused on the orange juice in her other hand.

"I was just asking Norman about the orange juice."

"I'm sorry Roger, but it's not cold anymore."

"That's ok, Dorothy. Norman, please bring me a glass."

"Right away sir."

He cleared his throat.

"So Dorothy, where did you go this morning?"

"Norman said I could take the day off, so I went to the market to get the orange juice he asked for, and I realized that I was near my father's mansion. So, I went exploring inside there, and I found his private library."

"Is that where you found that book?"

"Yes. Would you like to see it, Roger?"

He nodded, and she handed it to him. Norman then walked in, and handed him the glass. Dorothy poured him some juice. Roger nodded, and he looked through the book until he found the original music in the middle. He also found the letter from her father, and he read it.

"So, this belonged to the original Dorothy, huh? I'm amazed you found this."

"Yes. I think I will cherish it like the original Dorothy did."

"What about this music here? It doesn't look like the rest of the music at all."

"I think the original Dorothy composed that music. It's in my handwriting."

He nodded, and he smiled softly.

"Maybe you should try playing it."

She nodded as well.

"I think I will."

Roger then finished his food, and Norman took his plate to the kitchen. He then opened the door to the living room, and he gestured inside.

"After you."

* * *

Dorothy sat down at the piano, and Roger sat in a chair behind her. She found it interesting that she ended up at the piano even though she decided against playing it earlier that day.

As she looked over the sheet music, she noticed something about the lyrics.

"Roger."

"Yes, Dorothy?"

"This piece is a duet."

Roger blinked.

"And...so?"

"So, you are singing this with me."

He stood up.

"Now just hold on! What makes you think I can sing?"

Norman walked in the room, drying his hands on a clean towel.

"I've heard you before, Master Roger. In the shower, and on days that you are in a particularly good mood, I believe."

"I'm not singing. That's final."

Dorothy looked at him with her normal stone-cold look, but she didn't say a word. She just looked into his eyes.

Intimidated, Roger broke eye contact, and he moved next to her.

"Fine, I'll sing. But just this time!"

"That's all I ask, Roger."

She moved over, and he sat down next to her on the bench, and she started playing. After a short intro, she began to sing:

_Sometimes I feel so all alone_

_Finding myself calling your name_

Roger noticed his cue to start singing on the sheet, so he begrudgingly began:

_When we're apart, so far away_

_Hoping it's me that you're thinking of_

She almost smiled. He had a very nice singing voice.

_Could it be true, could it be real_

They started singing together.

_My heart says that you're the only one_

She broke off, leaving him to sing by himself.

_There's no one else, you're the only one for me_

And she joined back in.

_Yes, this time my love's the real thing_

By this point in time, Roger couldn't help moving closer to Dorothy. He was completely entranced by her voice. Whether or not she noticed, she didn't say or do a thing.

_Never felt that love is so right_

_The world seemed such an empty place_

_We need someone we could give our all_

_Baby, it's you, we'll be together now and forever_

She went off playing a break in the song, allowing Roger to breathe. After all, she was a robot and didn't need to breathe. Roger, on the other hand, was getting emotional over the song by this point, and he didn't quite want to admit what he was feeling: love. However, the break soon ended, and the two started singing together again.

_Could it be true, could it be real_

_My heart says that you're the one_

_There's no one else, you're the only one for me_

_Yes, this time my love's the real thing_

_Never felt that love is so right_

_The world seemed such an empty place_

_We need someone we could give our all_

_Baby, it's you, we'll be together now and forever_

_Never felt that love is so right_

_The world seemed such an empty place_

_We need someone we could give our all_

_Baby, it's you, we'll be together now and forever_

As the song ended, Roger could not deny it any longer. He was in love with a cynical android. He could sense the problems already. However, he didn't get to think about much else because Norman started clapping.

"Bravo! Miss Dorothy, you are truly a great musician, and you have an excellent voice as well, Master Roger."

Dorothy stood up, collecting and closing the music at the same time.

"Thank you, Norman. It was-"

She didn't get to finish her sentence, for what seemed to her like a power surge ripped through her body, and she started to fall. Luckily, Roger noticed quickly, and he grabbed her.

"Dorothy! Dorothy! Are you okay?"

At this, her eyes flew open. She was completely confused for a moment, but as her systems rebooted, she became aware of her surroundings.

"Roger, what happened?"

"I honestly don't know. You were talking, and then you froze up and fell down."

"Thank you for catching me."

She sat back down, and she held her head. For some strange reason, a once-locked part of her memory core was acting up, and it was overloading her consciousness.

"My head feels...strange."

Suddenly, she had what could only be described as a flashback, only it wasn't as clear. She could only call them "emotions".

Roger noticed her distress, and he put his arm around her. This brought out weird "emotions" in her, ones that she could not describe. She had never felt "feelings" before, so it was quite surreal.

"Roger, I think that music unlocked some of my memories. Memories of my past self."

"Really? What kind of memories?"

"I can only pull out the emotions, but to be able to sense emotion is a brand-new concept for me."

"What emotions are you feeling?"

"A mixture of fear and excitement, I think."

Roger nodded, and he just sat there while she sorted out her new-found emotions. As she thought back to the duet they sang earlier, however, she began to feel a new emotion, one that she didn't understand.

She could tell that her previous self felt this, and not just in a fraternal way towards her father, but as to who or any specifics, she had no clue.

She began to relax, and Dorothy started to feel comfortable in Roger's arm. However, her mind was uncomfortable, and she started feeling shy all of a sudden. She needed to voice her concern and new feelings to him.

"Roger?"

"Yes Dorothy?

"I'm feeling something new."

"What is it?"

"It's like happiness, but it's directed towards you."

He froze. Surely she didn't mean THAT...did she?

"Uh...what do you mean?"

"I feel...content sitting here next to you, and I think "happy" when I think of the duet we did earlier. I can't explain this feeling though, and I was hoping that you could help me."

"Well, it could be gratitude, or happiness as you said, or it could be-"

"Love."

Dorothy and Roger both looked at Norman, who they completely forgot was still in the room. Dorothy was intrigued.

"Love? I don't think I'm capable of 'love', Norman."

"I think you are, Miss Dorothy. If you can feel other emotions, you can feel love."

"Why would I be feeling this?"

"You may have romantic feelings for Master Roger."

Dorothy put her head down in deep thought. Roger, on the other hand, was thinking back to all of the flirtatious banter they had occasionally exchanged, knowingly or unknowingly. It was almost ironic.

"Excuse me, but I do think I have a way to test these romantic feelings."

They both looked at Norman again.

"You could kiss Master Roger."

Dorothy nodded. She may have been nervous, but her old sense of cool, robotic brashness took over. She leaned over to Roger, and she placed her lips over his in a chaste way, just to test the waters. Roger quickly freaked out, but he soon relaxed into it.

While she had no touch receptors on her lips, the new emotions that she was feeling were going wild. It was though she had always loved him, and it only took unlocking her emotions to fully understand it.

Roger, on the other hand, was feeling a similar reaction. He found her to be rather awkward to kiss due to her metallic lips, her lack of expression, and her inexperience, but that didn't mean he hated it. Rather, he enjoyed it. He reasoned mentally that he had always liked her deep down, but he was too oblivious to get it.

He wrapped his arms around her stomach, and she did the same around his neck. The kiss was pretty passionate, but it remained chaste...mostly.

Norman smiled, and he snuck over to the door.

"I'll just leave you two alone then. Enjoy yourselves!"

He snickered, and he left the two lovebirds.

Eventually, Roger needed to breathe, so he pulled away.

"I love you Dorothy."

"I love you too Roger."

"You know, you're not a bad kisser."

For a moment, he thought he made out just a barest hint of a smile on her face.

"You're such a louse, Roger Smith."

He smiled, and he went back to kissing her.

* * *

And there you go. I'm going to write a longer Big O fic later after I finish some of my other projects. For now, however, I would like you to review. Even it it's only a sentence, please review.


End file.
